Fate
by Magic Kaito
Summary: The girl's new life was perfect: a new start, new home, new love, although she could remember nothing of the old. But when a wandering monk is hired to help her, will her past be more than she bargained for? CHAPTER 4(5) UP!
1. Prologue

Posted: 8-6-04

Fate

AN: I've got another Inuyasha fic! This one is definitely NOT the usual thing I would write. I was just randomly thinking one day and I thought of the plot to this and then I was like "That would be a good story!" I sure hope you agree. I guess that in a since, this is an AU fic, but it takes place during a time that the story hasn't come to yet, so in theory, it's also not. I've been reading some of the more recent manga chapters straight from someone translating that weeks Japanese on line. Although I've by no means read everything, I do know a fairly good amount about what's been happening recently. So, the relationships in this fic will be based around where things are in Japan right now (8-6-04). In other words, some of this may be SPOILERS(in caps for people who aren't reading the AN s, and you should!), so be forewarned. I'd better not say anymore; I don't want to ruin anything in the story! And I don't own Inuyasha, either. Which stinks, because there are several things that I really want to happen. Anybody know Rumiko Takahashi's address or something?

Prologue

_Everyone deserves to be happy. Just because I am not a part of that happiness does not mean that it is wrong. We each choose our own paths and do what is best for ourselves. Nothing is supposed to be a certain way. When we think it is and find out that we are wrong, that is when we feel pain.  
  
There are times in ones life when you realize that one smiling face has been everything to you, and you don't even know it until it isn't there anymore. It's moments like this when a person really begins to regret their decisions, like the things left undone, and unsaid. We wish we could go back and tell that person exactly what they meant to us. However, the past cannot be changed and the future cannot be written. Things are as they are, and there is nothing that a person can do to make it otherwise. We must accept the path and keep moving. Even though I know there is no fate, I think that it is meant to be this way.  
  
...So, why do I feel so empty inside? _


	2. Awakening

Chapter 1: Awakening

AN: All righty, here's the official start of this! ... I don't read a ton of Inuyasha fics, and I saw in a summary once something about there being way too many memory loss fics. I've personally never seen a ton, and if I have I forgot about it, so to me this is originalish! I know some running things (like the high school stories) are intended to be like that, but to me I made this whole thing up! I'm sure you'll easily figure out what's going on, also, because due to the style I'll be using, I'm not really going to come out and say it. I know you're not idiots. You try writing a story like this! Wait, don't, you'll show me up! Oh well, at least this isn't a mystery like "The Fugitive" is supposed to be. I do have a few little surprises in this, though, so it won't be annoying, okay?  
  
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The girl awoke in a small room. She looked around to see if anything within was something that she would recognize. However, it appeared to merely be a small guest room in which many medicinal herbs and fresh linens lay. She was wearing a white robe, and could feel that many places of her body had bandages on them.

She sat up and tried to remember how she had gotten here. Her head was pounding, as though she had received a heavy wound to the back of it recently. She frantically searched through her mind to figure out what was going on but realized that not only did she not know how she had gotten to this place, she had absolutely no idea of who she was or what had happened to her throughout her entire life.

"Who... What... Where am I?" she finally said to herself.

"Oh, so you're awake," she heard an older man say. "I was wondering when you would come to."

He entered the room, and was indeed and elderly gentleman. He was slightly balding with white hair, and was wearing the usual clothing of a male villager in a green and blue fabric. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

"I... I don't know," she answered. "My head really hurts and I don't know where am I. Do I know you?"

"No, I'm afraid we've never been properly introduced," he replied, going over to a basin of water and ladling out some into a glass for her. "I was walking through the woods a few days ago and I found you lying there unconscious. You were in really bad shape. I took you back here to the village and took care of your wounds for you, but you've been asleep for five days."

"I have?" she said quietly. "Did I have anything with me?"

"You had a few strange things," he answered, handing her the glass and letting her drink for a moment. "I put them all in a small building on the edge of town so they would be safe until you got better."

She put the glass on the floor. "All right."

"Oh, I'm sorry!" the old man suddenly said, taking the cup. "I haven't even told you my name yet! I'm Tatsuya. What's your name?"

She sighed sadly. "I don't know," she murmured, looking around the room again to see if something jarred her memory.

Tatsuya looked slightly worried. "Oh. Well, maybe if you get some more rest, you'll remember once you're feeling better."

"I sure hope so," she replied, lying back down.

"Don't worry, young lady," Tatsuya said with a smile. "I'm sure you'll be fine. Everyone in the village will help you in any way they can."

"Thank you," she answered, still examining the area.

"Well, I'll come back to check on you later,' he said, walking out. "I know you've slept for a while, but I'm sure resting will do you some good."

He left the room, leaving her alone again. She finished looking at everything around her and finally closed her eyes, a tear running down her cheek.

"What's going on?" she whispered as she let herself drift back into sleep.

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AN: Yeah, I know that was REALLY short, but it's going to start getting longer and more interesting as the chapters go on, I promise!!! I'll get chapter 2 up ASAP, so please review to let me know if I should even bother!!!


	3. First Sight

Posted: 18-13-04  
Last chapter posted: 8-9-04 (whoops)

Chapter 2: First Sight

AN: (peers head around corner) Hello? Is anybody reading this? You are?! YAY!!! Man, this is such a weird fic for me! It's very hard for me to write, to tell you the truth. But, hey, you're responding well, so I'm trying my best to satisfy that! This chapter won't be very long, either, but eventually we'll get into my usual size chapter. Well, by usual I mean the stuff I'm did on Only You and like I have in The Fugitive (which I'm probably putting on hold) and stuff. That's my "usual" length. Unless you like freakishly short chapters, that is... Oh well! Maybe I'll split the difference, that'd be good! Right, I don't know Inuyasha. I need to quit forgetting that!

Thanks for the encouragment, Sango0808! I sure hope you enjoy this chapter as much as my other ones...

* * *

A few days later, the girl was feeling much better. The pain in her head had greatly subsided, and her wounds were healing fast. However, her memory was not recovering as well as the rest of her. In fact, it was not recovering at all. No matter how hard she tried, nothing she heard or saw seemed familiar to her or reminded her of anything. 

Tatsuya was coming in and checking on how she was doing every so often. On this particular day, he had come in with a bowl of stew and a small tray. She sat up without too much difficulty and looked into the saucer's contents for a moment before picking up the chopsticks that lay next to it.

"So, how are you feeling today?" he asked, watching her as she fished a vegetable out of the broth.

"Much better, Tatsuya-jiisan" she replied, putting it into her mouth.

"Can you remember anything, yet?" She swallowed and set the chopsticks down, looking very depressed. "No. I don't know if I'm going to either."

"Come, now, dear," Tatsuya said with a smile. "That's no way to look at things!"

"I keep trying my hardest to remember anything I can," she answered, as though she was continuing her last statement. "Nothing comes to me at all. I'm not sure what I'm going to do."

"Well, there's still hope," he replied reassuringly. "You haven't been outside yet. Maybe if you get some fresh air a little later on, you're thoughts will clear up."

"I hope you're right," she mumbled, picking up the bowl and sipping out a little of the broth. "It's just so strange, not even knowing your own name..."

Tatsuya smiled slightly as he watched her eat. "You know, if you can't remember your name, we can always call you something else."

"Well, what?" she asked, pulling a few more vegetables out of the stew. "How can you name someone who doesn't even know their real one?"

"It's very simple," he replied, scratching his head. "We just find another name to use so you'll know when a villager is talking to you once you get out."

She sighed again. "How long do you think I'll have to stay here?"

He looked slightly alarmed, but answered, "Well, as long as you think you need to. If you aren't happy here, I can always..."

"Oh, it's not that," she interrupted. "I was just asking if you thought I'd get my memory back soon. I really wouldn't feel right leaving if I don't even know where I'm going."

"I can't say," he answered, "but I think I might know what to call you..."

"Really?" she asked. "Does it have to do with my real name or something?"

"Well, no," he answered. "It's just that you remind me of someone..."

"Who, Tatsuya-jiisan?"

"My daughter," he said with a slight smile.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, suddenly very interested. "I didn't know you had a family."

"Well, I don't, anymore."

"I'm sorry," she said, worried that she had upset him. "What... happened?"

"Many years ago, a demon attacked this village," he said, not seeming too bothered by telling the tale. "We lost many people to it before it was finally slain, including my wife, both of my sons, and my daughter."

"I'm so sorry, Tatsuya-san," she murmured.

"You look a lot like her, you know?" he said with a smile. "And your behavior is much like hers, as well."

"Oh..." she said, wondering where he was going with this.

"Her name was Tai," he continued, still seeming fine about continuing this conversation. "I think she was about your age when it happened. Why don't we just call you that until you can remember your real name?"

She stared at the old man, feeling ver odd about being called the name of her caretakers dead daughter. But, she smiled slightly, and replied, "Sure. If you don't mind, that is."

"No, it's perfectly fine!" Tatsuya replied. "I've always wanted a daughter again."

"Well, I'm glad I can... help."

"Sorry to make you uncomfortable," he said, laughing a little. "Well, if you'd like to, step outside for a little bit; maybe it'll help you remember something about the real you!"

"Um, all right," she answered, pushing the tray away and trying her best to stand up. She tightened the robe she had been wearing to make sure that if there was a wind outside, nothing would happen. Tatsuya put his arm on her shoulder and helped her walk toward the door.

The sunlight blinded her for a moment. As her eyes began to adjust, she started seeing a very small town lined with many trees. A few people were walking the roads and talking to each other, and the shadows were spread out in many places.

Even though she couldn't remember seeing any before, she felt that this was a very beautiful place. She looked around, partly in awe, at all of the sights she now beheld.

"Does anything seem familiar, Tai?" Tatsuya suddenly asked, looking at her and smiling.

"No," she sighed. "I'm afraid not. But this village is so lovely..."

"Well, we've worked very hard to keep all of this up! After that demon attacked way back then, we never thought we would ever get it looking this beautiful." She smiled a little and kept looking around.

Just then she noticed a young man making his way down the path in front of were she had been healing. At almost the same moment, he looked up toward her, and stopped walking as their eyes met. They stared at each other for a moment that seemed to last forever, when Tatsuya spoke again.

"Do you think you've had enough?" he asked, looking over at her and realizing she had a strange look in her face.

"Uh, um... Sure," she finally replied, turning her gaze from the young villager and looking back toward where she was staying.

The boy watched her go inside the house, and kept looking at it for a few minutes more. He finally blinked a few times, and continued walking to his home.

* * *

AN: Hm, that wasn't as short as I thought it would be! Hee hee. My chapters may become longer than this, I don't know. I mean, I know what I want to happen, but how long it takes me to write it depends on my brain. Please review and tell me if you still like it!


	4. Shoshinsha

Posted: 8-18-04  
  
Chapter 3: Shoshinsha  
  
AN: waves happily Hi! I'm back! This is going to start having a plot soon, I promise. Well, I mean, outside of the little thing that I've been doing so far. I don't own Inuyasha. However, I do own my original characters, I guess... Well, I don't really have a copyright on them or anything, so I guess I can't do anything if you steal one, not that you'd want to. Well, I really like one that I'm about to officially introduce next chapter, most likely (we've all ready seen him), so maybe you can. It would make me mad, though. Grr.  
  
I have decided to respond to all of my reviewers now cause... I don't know, it's fun! Anyway, now beginning a new FMP tradition:  
  
Gamja the Wolf's Fang: Uh... Actually this is taking place in the feudal era. Wow, I'm not writing this well! It's taking place at a certain point that the storyline is going to get to, but hasn't yet. I can't say anymore though, but all will become clear eventually!  
  
snowbrat: You'll just have to wait and see! Hee hee. Thanks for the encouragement! Everyone, actually.  
  
Sango0808: w00t! Thanks for your reviews, I'm pretty sure it's going to get even more interesting.  
  
nekoyasha-kirara & Irasuto: Yay!!! Thanks for the reviews!

* * *

The next morning, the girl woke up as daylight hit her face. She felt much better, even more than she had the day before, but trying to see if her memory had recovered any proved to be hopeless. The only thing that really was standing out to her was that boy she had seen when Tatsuya had taken her outside. Who was he?  
  
She tried to stand up to see if she was feeling well enough to support herself, but dropped back to her knees when she felt that she still didn't have the strength for it. She lay back down and began thinking. She wasn't really sure what there was for her to think about, since she only had about a week's worth of memories, but she began recollecting the time she had been having.  
  
Tatsuya was really a very kind old man, she thought. A little strange, but very open hearted. He was even calling her the name of his dead daughter, for heaven's sake. She wondered what that girl was like, and then started wondering what she had been like before whatever injury had led her to being here and not knowing a thing.  
  
A few tears managed to stream down her cheeks before she turned her thoughts to other things. What little she had seen of the village the day before was beautiful. "I wonder how long I'll end up staying here," she said to herself. "Does this place even have a name? I should ask Tatsuya-jiisan the next time I see him."  
  
For some reason, her mind suddenly went back to the young man she had made eye contact with. Why did this keep on happening? She was fairly certain that they hadn't met before, as he didn't jar any memories, but anything was possible, she supposed. She had thought about him many times since they had seen each other, and every time, after feeling uncomfortable, she would try to turn her thoughts onto remembering her past. This never worked, however.  
  
"Hello?" she heard a voice say. "Tatsuya-san said he had some business outside of the village this morning and that I was supposed to come in and check on you." A woman entered the room, wearing a blue kimono and holding a bowl of some unknown food. She had long, black hair, and was very thin. "I'm Izumi, I live in the next home on the right," she commented, bringing the bowl over to her.  
  
She peered inside. It looked like rice with a few vegetables cooked in with it, something that Tatsuya hadn't given her before. "Thank you."  
  
"So, what's your name?" the woman asked, watching her with a smile.  
  
"Well, Tatsuya-jiisan calls me Tai, but I don't really know what my real name is."  
  
Izumi smiled. "Ah, yes," she said. "You do sort of look like she did."  
  
"Oh," Tai said, looking at her inquisitively. "You knew her?"  
  
"Well, not very well. I was only a very small girl when the demon attacked, and she was a young woman."  
  
"I see. So, how old are you?"  
  
"I'm twenty-three," Izumi answered. "The demon attacked Shoshinsha a little over twenty years ago, so as you can see..."  
  
"Is that the name of this village?" she interrupted, seeming confused.  
  
"Tatsuya-san didn't tell you? That's surprising!"  
  
"No, he didn't. I guess he didn't want to overload me with too much information since I can't remember anything about myself."  
  
Izumi smiled softly. "Well, this is the village of Shoshinsha. We're all glad to have you here!"  
  
Tai ate a bit out of the bowl before speaking again. "Did you lose anyone in the attack?"  
  
"No," she answered. "My parents did die a few years later, though, after my brother was born."  
  
"You have a brother?" Tai asked, feeling interested in learning more about the people of this village. "What's he like?"  
  
"He's five years younger than me," Izumi said, seeming to laugh a little. "Actually, he mentioned seeing you yesterday while he was coming home from an errand, but I don't know if you've been properly introduced."  
  
She gasped slightly. Could this be the same boy that she had locked eyes with?  
  
Apparently, the look on her face was a strange one, because Izumi suddenly asked, "Is everything all right?"  
  
"Uh, yes," Tai answered, smiling. "Just thinking, is all."  
  
"Well, I should probably get going. Tatsuya should be back early this afternoon, and he can return the bowl to me, then."  
  
"All right," she answered. "Thank you."  
  
"Don't mention it!" Izumi replied happily. "I'm glad to do it! I'll see you later!" With that, she left the room, leaving Tai by herself with the food.  
  
"I wonder..." she muttered to herself, before she dug into the rice.

* * *

AN: o.O Well, I just totally invented a character I never intended on having in my original plans. She just kind of showed up as I was writing this... I like her though. I guess I've got another original character, now... Oh well, such is the life of an author! Please review, and I'll update as soon as I can. Actually, I've got college coming up and I'm on vacation (yay, Document Manager/ QuickEdit), so I don't know if it'll be a very soon update, but it will happen, I swear! But if my updates go down the tube, it's due to my ever increasing schedule. 


	5. The Dream

Posted: 11-15-04

Chapter 4: The Dream

AN: Hey, guess what it's finally time for? And I'm not insinuating the fact that I have had absolutely no time to write my fics with this whole college thing! The beginning of the real plot!!! As well as the introduction of my last planned (which I am saying due to the surprise I gave myself last time) original character! You know who it is, you just don't know his name. Or his personality. I do not own Inuyasha. Heh, that's funny. It doesn't even seem like an Inuyasha genred fic yet, does it? It'll get there, just give me some time! ...And hopefully you gave me time between these updates XD. I'm so sorry, I've just been so freaking busy. I still really want to get this ficcie going, okay? Heh, if I had been writing this the way I used to write things, these first four may have been all one chapter! Anyway, time to answer to my beautiful reviewer!

Seed-of-Flame: w00t!!! I thought I wasn't gonna get any reviews this time through! Yay! Thanks a ton!

I have been noticing that Author Alerts and Sending Reviews wasn't been working that well in August(at least for me), so if you didn't know I had updated or your review didn't send, I understand. If not... (eyes welling up with tears) And now, on with the show!

* * *

Later that day, Tai was sitting in her bed, letting her mind wander. "I wonder who that boy I saw yesterday was? It could very easily be Izumi-chan's brother. I wonder how old I am in comparison to him? Probably about the same, I hope..." 

She stopped herself and blushed slightly. Why was she thinking things like this? She had more important things to worry about, like remembering her entire life!

Just then, Tatsuya walked into the room, holding a bundle of some kind. "Hello, Tatsuya-jiisan," she said, as he jumped a little from surprise.

"Oh! Hello there, Tai! I thought you might be sleeping."

"No," she answered a little sadly. "I've been just been doing some thinking..."

"Have you been able to remember anything?" he asked, looking hopeful.

"Not yet," she replied. "Why didn't you ever tell me the name of this village?"

"Well, I didn't think you were interested," he answered, setting down his pack and walking over toward her. "We call this place Shoshinsha, because..."

"Yes, Izumi-chan told me what it's named. Oh, yes! She said that you should bring her bowl back to her when you get the chance."

"That Izumi is a nice girl," Tatsuya commented, seeing the dish and picking it up. "She's always been very helpful."

"What were you doing this morning, anyway, Tatsuya-jiisan?" Tai asked, resting her face on her hand.

"Oh, just... looking around is all," he answered, making her blink in suspicion. "Come, now. If you've been up since this morning, you probably need to get some rest now."

"I supposed you're right," she said, lying back down.

"All right," he said, heading toward the door and grabbing the bundle he had brought in with him. "Well, I'm going to give this back, and I'll come in and check on you a little later."

"Thanks," she murmured, still wondering why he hadn't seemed too eager to answer her question about that morning. She closed her eyes, and yet sleep would not come to her.

* * *

Two days later, Tai felt that she had gained enough strength to get up and walk around. She slid herself out from the blankets she had been lying under and slowly raised one of her knees. She very carefully put her weight onto and hoisted herself upright. 

She wobbled for a moment. She hadn't stood by herself in... well, she wasn't sure how long ago it was, really, since she couldn't remember. Her legs still had a slight weakness in them, but she began taking small, slow steps away from where she had been lying.

It was a strange feeling. The muscles seemed to enjoy finally getting the exercise they had been missing. She really couldn't understand how she could remember how to do something like this, but had no idea of her past or anything like that. "The mind is a strange thing," she thought as she neared the wall and threw all of her weight on it to rest a little. "I guess it's one of those things that people really don't appreciate until it's gone... Not that I'd know if I did or not."

Just then, someone knocked on the door frame. Tai pulled her robe close to her and dropped to her knees, trying to make her way back to her bed in case it was Tatsuya, who probably didn't want her up without supervision. Then she thought, "Wait a second, why would he knock on his own door?"

"C-come in," she finally said, pulling the sheet back over her and lying down.

"Sorry, miss, but both Tatsuya-san and Onee-san are busy, so I came by to..."

At that moment, a young man entered the room, holding a bowl very similar to the one Izumi had given her a few days before. He was fairly tall, nothing too spectacular, though. He had short brown hair and piercing eyes to match. He wore the usual clothes of a village man, although he wore a strange green vest over that. The moment they saw each other, they both gasped.

"It... It's him," she thought, looking at the uncomfortable villager standing before her. "I-I was right. He is Izumi-chan's brother."

He seemed to be having a hard time finding his words. "I'm sorry," he finally stammered. "I don't think we've been properly introduced. I saw you the other day, but, um, well, you went inside right after that, so I didn't get a chance to say anything. I wasn't intending to be rude or anything..."

"Oh, n-no!" she suddenly replied, her heart racing. What was the big deal? He was just a villager, wasn't he? "It... It's fine."

"O-okay," he answered, staring at the soup. "Well, uh, I don't know if Onee-san said anything about me..."

"She mentioned she had a brother..." Tai answered softly, still feeling very uncomfortable.

"W-well, my name's Nobuhiro," he muttered.

"Uh, Tatsuya-jiisan calls me Tai," she replied, obviously seeing something very interesting in the empty corner. "I... don't really remember anything about myself or why I was injured, though."

"W-well," he said, finally hobbling toward her, "you probably want something to eat. I'm sorry if it's not that good; Onee-san had to leave before she could make anything so I did it myself..."

She very hesitantly picked up her chopsticks and froze for a moment. Why was she faltering like this? It was just stew! She finally pulled out a piece of a carrot and put it in her mouth.

"It... It really isn't bad," she answered once she had swallowed it, something in her lost memory telling her that she had eaten much better food than this.

"O-okay," he stammered. "Well, I suppose I should just... let you rest. S-somebody will be back to check on you later, I think." He started to leave.

"T-thank you, Nobuhiro-kun..." she whispered, feeling her cheeks redden.

His face seemed to turn a similar shade as he stopped dead in his tracks. "N... no problem!" he answered with a strange smile. There was an awkward moment of silence, and then he finally made his way out the door.

Tai stared after him for a while and looked back down at her food. Why had she acted like that? What was the big deal?

* * *

That night, she still lay there thinking about the events of that afternoon. "What is it about him that makes me feel so strange?" she though, and she rolled over onto her side. "Did I maybe know him before my accident?" 

Sleep came to her eventually, and she sank into her dreams. However, this one had a strange feeling to it. She was running through a field, and something told her that she felt very happy. Next to her were two shadowy figures, one seeming very tall and aged, and the other very young. Just then, they both fell over, and a horrible sense of dread over came her as darkness surrounded her. Suddenly, there was a faint light in one direction, and in front of that stood several more shadowy figures. Two were very tiny, and the other three were around her height. One of these three stood in the middle of the group, and something about this person seemed to draw her in. She kept walking toward the figure, now feeling an odd sensation of peace, and slowly lifted her hand to touch the person. Suddenly, another shadow swept over the group, and she sat up with a muffled cry.

She looked around the dark cabin, and could feel the persperation on her body.

"What's the matter!" Tatsuya cried, having apparently been on his way to look in on her.

"I..." she began, not sure how to explain this strange phenomenon, "I had an odd dream. There were all of these people around me, but I couldn't see them and they kept being swallowed up by shadows..."

The old man looked very concerned. "Do you think this may have something to do with your past?"

"I-I don't know," she answered, putting a hand to her forehead and looking at the floor. "Maybe."

Tatsuya smiled slightly. "Well, go back to sleep, my dear. But if you have any other dreams like that, be sure to tell me."

"O-okay," she replied, lying back down and closing her eyes, still feeling strangely uncomfortable.

* * *

AN: Okay, there you go! Please raise your hands if you haven't figured out what's going on! (looks around and sees no hands) (Sigh), that's what I thought... Hey, it's one of those stories where things are painfully obvious, okay?! And I just like the name Nobuhiro, although I admit I first heard it through Rurouni Kenshin, but he isn't named after anybody, okay? I'll update... whenever I can. Hopefully soon! Don't give up on busy lil me, okay? I'm still out here, trying to get my brain to work! But, if I don't get any reviews again, I won't, so click that "Go!" button! ...please... (insert sad puppy eyes) 


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